


(Not) Quite Right

by IrinyaClockworker



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Gen, I guess???, M/M, idk what this is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 08:13:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 12,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21597070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IrinyaClockworker/pseuds/IrinyaClockworker
Summary: What happens when a strange new building just... shows up next to your apartment? Well, if you're Leorio, you go say hi to your new neighbor.And if that neighbor just happens to be the strangest person you've ever met, well. Sometimes you have to take risks.
Relationships: Kurapika/Leorio Paladiknight
Comments: 29
Kudos: 111





	1. Chapter 1

The only thing that crosses Leorio's mind when he gets back from class to see a brand-new building right next to his apartment is, _That's not supposed to be there._

And it really isn't. There was an empty plot of land there; people had been thinking about building on it for as long as Leorio can remember, but whenever they tried, things started going really, really wrong. First it was the earthquake(which somehow left everything else unscathed), then the infestation(again, leaving everything else unscathed), then the equipment malfunctions, until finally a worker nearly drowned in liquid concrete(how did that even _happen?_), after which people just... gave up. It was just too dangerous.

So for this building to just _show up,_ no construction project, nothing, is... very strange. And it wasn't there when Leorio left this morning, so either it sprung up out of nowhere or the fastest construction crew on the planet came around. He's not sure which seems more believable.

It looks like a house, but not any house Leorio's seen before. It looks... _old._ Really old. There's spiraling columns and cracked windows(doesn't that get drafty?) and he thinks the door has stained glass set in it. Well, someone probably lives in it, since there's a light on through one of the front windows. He should go say hello, welcome them to the neighborhood... or something like that. _Hi, what the hell are you and your weird house doing here?_

Yeah, that's a great conversation starter for sure.

One shower and a sorry excuse for 'dinner' later, he's standing in front of the door--and yes, that _is_ stained glass, blue and gold and quite pretty. Now if he could just work up the courage to knock...

He opts for the doorbell instead. It probably won't work, and then he can turn around, say he tried, and go home. Except it _does_ work, and he startles at the sound of a deep chime, like some church bell.

The door swings open mere seconds later, and he suddenly finds himself without the ability to speak.

There is a _very_ good-looking blond on the other side, clad simply in a thick gray sweater and black slacks, and staring at Leorio with an extremely unimpressed look.

"Yes?" His tone is flat and cold, but if it weren't Leorio imagines it would be quite nice to hear.

"Um. Uh." Leorio replies quite intelligently.

The blond sighs. "Are you here for something? If not, then please leave. I don't have time for idle chit-chat."

He looks like he's about to close the door. 

"No, I--shit, I was just--I just wanted to say, welcome to the neighborhood, you know?"

"Well, you've said it now. Thank you very much," the blond replies without changing tone or expression. "Are you leaving now?"

"...Uh, my name's Leorio. Leorio Paladiknight. I live in the apartment next door."

"Good for you."

"...You going to tell me your name?"

"No."

_Not much of a 'people' person, huh..._

"Goodbye." The door swings shut.

"H-Hey!" Leorio knocks again, then rings the doorbell just for good measure, but the pretty blond doesn't come back.

Pity. Leorio would have quite liked to learn his name, at the very least.

He shows up again the next night, this time with a package of cookies. Not made by him; he can't cook to save his life. They're storebought, the soft kind with the puffy frosting and sprinkles; his personal favorite. He hopes the strange person in this house likes them too, otherwise it'll be a bit embarrassing.

The door opens before he even does anything this time, and he finds the blond looking at him with an expression that can only be described as 'irritated'.

"You're back." Well, that's somewhat obvious.

"Yeah. Uh, I brought cookies!" He holds them out, and for a moment something seems to spark in the other's eyes as he looks down at them.

"...Thank you." He snatches them before Leorio can respond.

"Yeah, no problem. Uh, consider it a... a housewarming gift. Um, speaking of 'housewarming'... your windows..."

"In disrepair. It's fine." He turns away from the door and starts to walk away. "Are you coming?" 

"...Yeah!" Leorio hurries after him. He doesn't need any further invitation.

The inside of the house is surprisingly cozy--it's still old-fashioned, to be sure, but it's spotless and it doesn't seem to be cold at all.

"As you can see, there's no issue." 

He sits down at a small table with the package of cookies, opens them, and takes one out, nibbling at it almost thoughtfully. It doesn't look like he drops a single crumb.

"I'm not sharing," he states in between bites. "You can buy your own."

"...Not _that_ easily," Leorio mutters.

"Mm?" 

"I'm in med school. Not a lot of extra cash."

"Yet you bought these for me."

"...You seem interesting."

"Hm. Yes. I suppose you could say that." He focuses on another cookie. "You said you were in... 'med school'?"

"Yeah. You know, medical school." There isn't another chair, so Leorio stays standing. "To be a doctor."

The blond stills for a moment. "A doctor?"

"Yep."

A quick, almost begrudging sigh. "Fine. You may have _one._"

_What's with the sudden change?_

"...It's Kurapika."

"What?"

"My name. That's what you wanted, isn't it? You can go now."

"What, that's it?"

"Yes."

"...You have a nice name. It suits you." 

"Does it?" He seems entirely uninterested in anything but the cookie. Meanwhile, Leorio is feeling impossibly out of place and would really like to just disappear. "I should hope so."

"...Your house is kinda weird."

"Is it?"

"Well, it just _showed up._ Houses don't... _do_ that."

"I suppose not." He closes his eyes.

"So... how'd you manage it?"

Kurapika's eyes open again, and is it Leorio's imagination or is there a faint red glow to them now?

"That's none of your business." His voice sounds... _layered._ It's... not quite right.

"Hey, no need to get like that, I was just curious."

"Curiosity isn't wanted here." He stands up, and looks Leorio straight in the eye. "I rescind my invitation."

Leorio doesn't have time to register those words before he's standing on the porch again, staring at a closed door.

_What the fuck._


	2. Chapter 2

"How the _hell_ did you do that yesterday?"

Kurapika just stares at him, exasperation clear on his features. "You don't give up, do you?"

"Hell no. Not until I figure out what's going on here, anyway." Leorio stares right back, and surprisingly enough it's Kurapika who breaks eye contact.

"Fine. Come in."

There's a second chair at the table this time. They sit across from each other, Kurapika straight and stiff and Leorio leaning back. "So. How the hell did you do that?"

"You can't remain in this house without my permission." Kurapika closes his eyes. "It takes someone of far greater power than you to override my will. Very few have ever been able to do so."

"...So, what, it's like... magic?"

"I suppose you could call it that." Kurapika looks off to the side, as if watching something Leorio can't see.

"...Are you not human, or what?"

Kurapika actually laughs, at that--it's quite pleasant to hear. "No. I'm quite human. Not everyone in this house is, though," he adds pointedly. "Which is why you shouldn't be here. I took a risk allowing you in at all."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" It's... a little freaky. The intensity in Kurapika's eyes tells him that it's not a joke. "Who else is in here?"

"It's hardly important, to you anyway." Kurapika smiles a bit. "You won't be here long enough for it to matter."

"How do you know?" Leorio doesn't plan on leaving so quickly. He wants to learn more about Kurapika, about whatever it is going on here.

The smile vanishes, and Kurapika looks down. "No one ever is."

"Maybe I'm not like everyone else."

"You think I haven't heard that one before?" Their eyes meet again, and this time, there's traces of contempt on Kurapika's face. "You're hardly the first to say that. I'm old, Leorio. Quite old."

"You don't look it," Leorio replies dumbly.

"Perhaps not. But I am. I've been in this house since before you were born, and I will be here long after you die. I've had many 'guests' here. They either leave, or they're... taken."

_"Taken?"_ He _really_ doesn't like the way Kurapika says that.

"Well. As I said. I am not the only one who frequents this place."

"Who are the others?" He's not sure he wants to know the answer anymore, but he asks it again anyway.

"Devils." Kurapika says it simply. "You might call them that. I don't know what they are, and I don't care. It hardly matters. I know what they do and how to keep them away." His voice falters. "Most of the time, anyway... You don't know. And even if you did, you wouldn't stand a chance against them. I barely have enough power to fight them off most of the time, and sometimes I don't even have that much. Someone like you? They would end you in seconds. And that'd be the kinder fate."

What kind of fucked up place _is_ this? And Kurapika's been living here for--_how_ long?

"So. You can't stay here." 

"And you _can?_"

"I told you," Kurapika snaps. _"I_ know how to fight them off." 

"But you can't just--you're telling me you've been here for _what,_ longer than I've even been _alive--_"

"At least three times as long," Kurapika interrupts.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever--and you've been dealing with whatever this is all by yourself? And even leaving that aside, you said you were human. But you sure aren't talking like you are. What kind of human lives that long?"

"I told you. I'm perfectly human." Kurapika's eyes narrow. "I made a pact. That's the only reason I'm still here."

"...What the hell, Kurapika?"

"You would never understand it." Kurapika's voice is cold. 

"Try me," Leorio challenges.

_"Fine."_ Kurapika's eyes are glowing again. "You really want to understand what's going on in this house? Fine." He stands up. "There's a door at the end of the hallway. It's locked, but I can let you in. If you're really so desperate... Just remember one thing, Leorio Paladiknight. If you go through that door, _you_ take responsibility for whatever happens to you inside."

"Fine."

The door itself is mostly unremarkable; the only thing of note about it is the fact that the strange pattern from the stained glass is carved into the wood.

Kurapika pulls a key out from under his collar and turns it in the lock. 

The door opens to absolute blackness. There's nothing on the other side at all, not as far as Leorio can see.

"Do you still want to go inside?" There's an almost cruel smile on Kurapika's face now. 

_No._ "Yes."

"Very well. But keep this in mind." He smiles a little wider, and puts a hand on Leorio's shoulder. It's icy cold, even through Leorio's clothing. "You won't be alone."

Before Leorio can respond, Kurapika shoves him in.

He can just barely hear the door slamming shut behind him.


	3. Chapter 3

He's so fucked. He's _so fucked._ What the hell was he thinking? He probably just got himself killed. That smile on Kurapika's face right before pushing him through the door certainly suggested something like that. He went too far, or something, and now he's... well, probably about to die.

He feels like he's falling, though he's not sure how long he's been falling _for._ Time has somewhat lost meaning--he tried to count the seconds but lost track. 

He's just about resigned himself to it when he feels _something_ trailing across him. He definitely doesn't scream. Nope. Not at all. 

(He totally does.)

At that, there's a burst of hissing noise that sounds--almost like laughter, and his fall ends abruptly against something that feels like stone. He still can't see anything--no, there's something visible, something moving in the darkness, deep blue on black. 

_ **You are not him.** _

It isn't a voice so much as it is a _thought--_something that certainly didn't come from Leorio's mind. Something put there.

_ **Another visitor?** _

_ **Enough visitors. Kill it.** _

_ **Not yet.** _

_ **Are you here for him?** _

It's some sort of conversation, going on in his own head, and he can't follow it. He's terribly certain that he's about to die.

_ **They are all here for him.** _

_ **Interloper. You don't belong here.** _

_ **You cannot have him. He is happy here. He is safe here.** _

_ **Your world will not touch him. You will not touch him. You will not bring your world into this place any longer.** _

_ **It tried to corrupt him already. He was wishing. He would leave. Kill it. Kill it. Kill it.** _

_ **Kill it before it kills him.** _

"Hey, I don't know what's going on, but I'm not going to--_ow!"_ It feels, for a moment, like he's been submerged in flames.

_ **Do not speak. Trespasser.** _

_ **It may belong to them.** _

_ **It does not bear either mark.** _

_ **He trusts it. Did he not accept its offering?** _

_ **He craves the outside. Trust has little to do with it.** _

_ **He cannot leave. He cannot break his vows.** _

_ **He would not. He cannot.** _

_ **It will tempt him.** _

_ **He is stronger. ** _

_ **Let him choose what to do with it. He will make the correct decision. He always does.** _

_ **Wise little one.** _

_ **Enough. It is corrupting Our presence. Get rid of it. He can choose its fate.** _

_ **It shall be done.** _

And then he's back in the hallway where he'd started, head aching and vision blurred--and no sign of Kurapika anywhere.

_What the hell?_

He doesn't see Kurapika on the ground floor, so he goes upstairs--and it looks far worse up here, like things are about to fall apart. He feels like one wrong move will send him crashing through the floor. But this is where Kurapika is, isn't it? Unless he left... but whatever just happened, it left Leorio with the distinct impression that Kurapika would never leave this house.

Why is it that when he thinks about what happened only minutes ago, he can't remember more than brief flashes? It's as if it was all a dream, but the pounding headache he still has makes it feel highly unlikely.

The door at the end of this hallway is cracked, and he can hear the faint sound of someone crying. _Kurapika?_ For a moment, he remembers the warning he'd received--_"I am not the only one who frequents this place"_\--but it won't be a big deal if he goes a little closer, right?

As he approaches, the sounds change into words, the same two words over and over again.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Kurapika chokes out, and through the crack in the door Leorio sees him, on his knees in front of a bed entirely curtained off--white drapes thin enough to let light in, but thick enough to not let Leorio see anything but a shadow through them. 

He tries to get closer, but a floorboard creaks loudly under his feet, and Kurapika startles, turning and climbing to his feet in one smooth motion. His eyes are red and swollen from crying, and though Leorio barely knows him, it breaks his heart anyway. 

Kurapika locks the door behind him with another key, and briefly leans against the wood, resting his forehead against it and whispering something Leorio can't make out. After that, he turns, and it's clear that he's trying to affect nonchalance.

"You're not dead."

"Nope. Should I be?"

"Probably. They must have liked you."

"Who?"

"My guardians." Kurapika smiles wanly. "They're not fond of visitors."

"...Noted." Somehow that doesn't come as much of a surprise to him. "And... just _what_ are they?"

"I don't know," Kurapika admits. "But they saved me. They gave me a place to stay, and they provide for me. I don't need to know anything more than that." He sighs, and presses his hands to his forehead like he's trying to stave off a headache. "Could you leave now, please? I'm going to have some explaining to do. Among other things."

"I'm guessing if I don't, you'll just... pull that rescinding thing again?"

"You catch on quickly." 

"...Sure." Leorio shrugs. He might as well try to sleep off this headache, anyway. 

"Good. Close the door on your way out." 

Leorio's just closed the front door behind him when he hears the laughter. It's not Kurapika's voice.

The screaming, on the other hand, most certainly is.


	4. Chapter 4

He's back as soon as he can be the next day.

It's not like he didn't try to get back in as soon as he heard the screams--but the door wouldn't open, and the handle burned him. Trying to break it down didn't work, either.

He's had a hard time focusing on classes all day, worrying. What happened in there? Is Kurapika okay? 

When the door opens, he's overcome by relief... but it's quickly replaced with concern as he sees the state Kurapika is in. There's scratches and bruises across his face, neck, and hands--and those are just the parts Leorio can _see._ He moves like each movement is painful, and doesn't even seem to have the energy to be annoyed that Leorio is back--he doesn't even speak, just holds the door open and shuts it after Leorio's inside.

"I didn't... think you'd come back," he finally says, sitting down at the kitchen table again and wincing. 

"I was worried," Leorio replies honestly. "You look like hell... what _happened?_ Is there anything I can do to help?"

Kurapika shakes his head. "It'll fade by tomorrow. Always does. Most of it, anyway..."

"...It wasn't your 'guardians' who did this to you, was it?" _If it was..._

"No!" Kurapika shakes his head again, more forcefully this time. "They would never! They're... the only reasons it wasn't worse."

"Then who?"

"I told you," Kurapika replies tiredly. "This place... it's not just me. There's... there's _creatures_ in here. They look like men, most of the time, but they're _not._ One of _them_ did this to me."

"...Why?"

_"Why?"_ Kurapika scoffs. "You really don't understand how any of this works, do you? Those _things_\--I barely have enough power to fight them off. I can't exactly take time to ask why they're doing this. If I could..." He shakes his head. "I can't. So it doesn't matter. All I can do is try to keep them back for the time being."

"No, it's not that." Leorio sighs. "Why are they here? If your--guardians--can't they protect you?"

"No." Kurapika's hands curl into fists. "They can give me the power to protect myself as best as I can. But they aren't warriors. They're protectors, healers." 

"They don't act like any protectors or healers I've ever seen," Leorio mutters.

"Well, clearly you haven't seen many," Kurapika snaps. "Continue to insult them and I will no longer tolerate your presence here."

"...Sheesh, sorry..." 

"They're bound to me." Kurapika looks down. "Everything that lives in this place is bound to me. And in turn, I am bound to this place."

"So... you can't leave? Ever?"

"I can. But I won't." His voice falters, and he abruptly changes the subject. "You said you were studying to become a doctor. How good are you?"

"How--Geez, I don't know. Uh, I guess I'm pretty decent? I'm still in school, though... Why, are you sick?"

"No. I don't get sick." Kurapika smiles faintly. "As long as I'm here, I'll never get sick. These injuries--they'll fade by tomorrow. I won't age, and I won't die. As I said, I'm bound to this place. It restores me."

"...I see." But he really doesn't.

"This is what my guardians have given me." Kurapika's smile seems a little more genuine, now. "They saved me."

"But... isn't it hard?"

"Isn't _what_ hard?"

"Being by yourself. For this long."

"No." Kurapika sighs. "I get visitors, sometimes. People like you, who get curious about me, about this house, about everything. And who get tired of it all, and leave. Once you've finished here, this place will relocate, somewhere you won't find it again. And someone else will come. But even without that, I wouldn't be alone."

_Because of your 'guardians'... Right._

"And I keep myself busy. There's a lot of work to do around here, after all--and I still have to fight off those _things_ whenever they decide to show up. And there's a library."

"I imagine you've probably read everything in it, though."

"That's impossible." Kurapika's eyes gleam. "No one has the time to read everything."

The way he says it doesn't sound quite right.

"If you ever need textbooks, you're free to come over and look for them," Kurapika adds idly. "Of course, you can't take any of them out of here. But you can study them, if you like."

_Seriously?_ "Your library has _textbooks?"_

"Of course. It has everything."

Why does it seem like it's not hyperbole when Kurapika says it?

"On one condition."

"Ah?"

"Bring more food." Kurapika's eyes shine. "Or just... _things._ No one brings me anything." He inhales sharply, and amends his statement. "Almost no one, I should say."

"So an exchange, then?"

"Yes... An exchange. That's exactly what it is."

"Just so long as I don't have to give up my soul or anything," Leorio jokes, at which point Kurapika stands up.

"It's getting late," he says. "You should go home."

"Huh? What time is it?" He starts to check his watch, but Kurapika's voice cuts him off.

_"Late."_

The tone of his voice brooks no arguments. 

"I just--"

Kurapika sighs.

"I rescind my invitation."

And... he's on the doorstep yet _again._

Why does it feel like the pattern in the stained glass is... smiling at him?

He shudders, and hurries home.


	5. Chapter 5

"Hey, Leorio, want to go out for drinks? My girl's got a friend you might be into." Normally Leorio would accept, but...

"Not tonight, I've already got plans."

"Oh, you have a date?" His classmate grins. "What's she like?"

"It's not like that," Leorio deflects, and hopes his face hasn't gone bright red. "It's just, someone lives next door to me now, and I'm going to go visit him..."

"Is that so?" The grin grows a little. "Well, you'd better be careful. I hear that house is cursed."

"How so?" _I mean, aside from the weird spirit things and whatever roughed Kurapika up like that the other day..._

"I don't know, but it sounds spooky! Aren't you scared?"

"Nope." _If Kurapika lives there, it can't be **that** bad. Right?_

"Your funeral, dude. Well, have fun with your new boyfriend, or whatever he is..."

"...Well, he's not--" _Never mind._

When Kurapika opens the door this time, Leorio sees that his prediction was right--he's returned to the way he was when they first met, no sign that he'd ever been injured at all. 

"Come in." This time, the words are spoken with some warmth.

Leorio tosses a bag of groceries on the kitchen counter, and Kurapika's eyes light up. "You brought food!" He starts rummaging through it, occasionally exclaiming in delight at something or other.

"...Why are you so excited about that?"

"I don't need to eat," Kurapika explains, still setting things out. "And the only way food is going to get here is through people bringing it to me, so I hardly ever have anything like that."

A life without food? _Sounds rough..._

"Can't you get it delivered?"

Kurapika blinks. "People do that?"

"Yeah, you just have to set it up... do you have a phone or a computer or something?"

"What?"

"Has _no one_ told you what those are?"

"No," Kurapika says plainly. "People don't come here to tell me things, or give me things. They come to ask questions and to take."

"...Take _what?"_ Though he's not entirely sure he wants to know the answer.

"Whatever they like," Kurapika replies with a shrug. "Most of it can be replaced. What can't... becomes an exchange."

"What does that mean?"

"If you take something from me that I can't replace," Kurapika says, very slowly, "you will give up something that _you_ can't replace, in return." He turns, and looks straight at Leorio. "In case you were considering it... Unless you're prepared to offer something of equal value in return, _do not take anything from me."_

"...Are you saying... what I think you're saying?"

"I've never killed anyone, if _that's_ what you're thinking," Kurapika replies. "But I can't say that this place hasn't done it for me."

"That's not exactly reassuring, Kurapika."

"It isn't supposed to be."

"...How many?"

"Last count... fourteen. Fifteen, maybe? I can't remember." Kurapika gestures vaguely. "That's why you need to be careful in here. Don't go anywhere without me."

"Or I'll get killed?"

"Possibly. Many of them know they can't lose anything more, so they take joy in taking as much from me as possible. I've lost track of the people who have ignored my warnings and been taken by them."

"...Those creatures you talked about."

"Exactly." Kurapika sighs. "Of course, that's only most of them. Two are worse."

Well, that's not concerning at all. "How much worse?"

"One of them will make you suffer before you die." Kurapika smiles wanly. "The others kill painlessly, mostly. But he is sadistic. And the other one... won't kill you at all. You'll wish you'd died by the time he is through with you, though."

"...And... how do you know that?" He's not sure he wants to know the answer, and the way Kurapika glances to the side makes him quite certain that he shouldn't have asked.

"Like I said. I don't always have the power to fight them off."

"And that's what happened the other day?"

"Yes." Kurapika sighs. "In the end, I always win. They can't kill me, no matter how hard they try. But that doesn't mean they can't get the upper hand. And when they do... Well, you saw the results of that. And that was one of the better days."

_Then... what are the worse days like?_ He gets the feeling Kurapika doesn't want him to pry any further, though. 

"So... do you want to learn about phones, or what?"

Kurapika's head snaps up, and his eyes gleam. "Yes."

"This is a 'phone'?" He stares at Leorio's curiously. "And... you can talk to people with it?"

_How old **are** you?!_

"Yeah. From a long way, as long as they have one too. Here." He's glad to see he can at least get reception in here, and he pulls up the Wikipedia article on telephones before handing it back. Kurapika's eyes go wide.

"It has _books_ on it?"

"I thought you said your library has everything... Shouldn't you already know about this?"

"...I don't have time to _read_ everything," Kurapika mutters. 

"What sort of things do you read, then?"

"I suppose you'd consider them books about 'magic'." Kurapika shrugs. "Supernatural phenomena. Medical textbooks."

Well, that last one is definitely different. "Why do you read medical textbooks if you don't get sick and your injuries aren't even real threats?"

Kurapika closes off at that. Leorio can _see_ it happen--he draws back into himself, and goes back to reading about phones without response.

By the end of the day, Leorio has learned two things about Kurapika: he loves learning about things, and he's easily absorbed by even the simplest of games. He's also very bad at them, and finally pushes the phone back at Leorio in frustration. "Your idea of 'games' are strange," he justifies. "I've never seen anything like them." _No shit?_

"You really don't know much, do you?" The words come out without him really thinking about them.

"I know plenty! Just not about--your--your _ridiculous_ 'outside'!"

"It's not so ridiculous. It's just through the front door," Leorio points out, and Kurapika shudders like the thought scares him. "If you ever feel like it, I could show you around a bit."

_"No!"_ Kurapika practically shouts, and then covers his mouth. "I... I don't want to go out there. There's bad things out there. Bad _people."_

"Aren't there bad things in here, too?"

"...I _know_ them," Kurapika mutters. "I know how to fight them. The people from out there... the things they do... I don't know them. If I go out there, I'm helpless. And... I'd lose everything."

"...What do you mean, you'd lose everything?"

"I can't talk about it." Kurapika looks down at his lap, eyes closed tightly. "Not to you. Not to anyone."

"...Okay. You don't have to."

Kurapika visibly relaxes at that.

"It's silly, isn't it?" he asks a few moments later. "It's not like it would be unfair or wrong for someone like me to get hurt, after all. I get hurt all the time, anyway. And it's my own fault."

_What's that supposed to mean?_

"Look... I barely know you... but I know that you don't deserve any of the bad things that happen to you."

"You have too much integrity, Leorio." Kurapika smiles faintly. "And you're right about one thing, at least. You don't know me. You don't know anything about me." His hands curl into fists. "Please leave now."

"Are you sure it's okay for you to be alone right now?"

"I'll be fine." He sounds so... resigned. "I have things I need to do now. So please, leave."

"Okay." He stands up, and pauses. "...Good night, Kurapika."

Kurapika doesn't respond.


	6. Chapter 6

When he gets there the next day, the door opens on its own--Kurapika isn't behind it, but he can hear a faint voice from upstairs calling out.

"Come in."

So he does.

Kurapika is on the second floor, doing--well, he's not sure _what_ Kurapika is doing. There's a red circle on the floor, glowing, and Kurapika kneels in the middle of it, holding something Leorio can't quite make out.

"Stay back, will you?" Kurapika asks calmly. Leorio nods, and takes another step back just for good measure. When he peers more closely at what Kurapika is holding, he sees that it's a snake--but not one that looks like any he's ever seen before. For one thing, it's _blue--_and sure, he's no snake expert, there might very well be such things as blue snakes, but he could swear it's looking right at him, and it's kind of creeping him out.

At least, until Kurapika kills it, and simply throws its body to the ground. The moment it leaves his hands, it dissolves, golden powder falling onto the ground where it had been.

Kurapika looks up, and smiles a little bit. "Welcome back."

"Did you... need to kill that?" Leorio asks, once they're seated at the table like normal. "Couldn't you have just put it outside?"

"No. That _thing_ can't leave here any more than I can. Watch out for it, by the way. It'll be back." 

Leorio blinks in confusion. "But you killed it."

"Not permanently. If there's a way to do that, I haven't found it yet. Trust me, I've tried a lot of different methods... I was lucky enough to be able to catch it before it changed, this time."

"'Changed'?"

Kurapika smiles thinly. "Assumed human form, I should say. It's much harder to kill like that."

"So it's definitely not a normal snake." Of course, it's been obvious for a while now. 

"No. It's bound to me just like everything else in this place. Gods know I wish it weren't," he mutters, half to himself. "Someday I'd like to figure out a way to get rid of it for good, but until then... I do what I can. If you see it, stay as far away as possible," he adds, warningly. "Don't ever let it bite you, or that's the end of it. You won't die, but..."

_"You'll wish you'd died by the time he is through with you..."_

"...Noted," Leorio replies, and hopes the nervousness he feels doesn't show. 

"There's one other thing you should watch out for," Kurapika continues. "Spiders."

"What, you have some kind of infestation?" 

"You could say that." Kurapika's expression is tight and a little upset, though it seems like he's trying to hide it. "Don't let them near you, either. They _will_ kill you."

"And they have human forms, too?"

"Yes. All of them do." Kurapika sighs. "There's a mark on all of them, but it's hard to spot sometimes. Watch out for anyone with a spider mark on them." His voice is... it's shaking. Why? "Twelve legs. And one of them--he wears a coat with an inverted cross. If you see him, run as fast as you can and hope he doesn't catch you. But it's the one who doesn't have the spider mark that you need to avoid at all costs."

"Is that one the one you killed earlier?"

"Yes." Kurapika's hands curl into fists. "There's marks on him, too, but you won't be able to see most of them. And if you do, well... by then it'll be too late." He pauses. "Stay here."

A minute or two later he returns, and puts a piece of what appears to be parchment in front of Leorio. It's old, and brittle, and it looks like if he touches it it'll fall apart, but it's the picture on it that catches his attention immediately.

There's a detailed rendering of someone's back on it, but that's not what draws Leorio's eye. It's the marks.

The person in the image is covered with them. Some appear to be natural scars, but others... there's a snake 'draped' around their shoulders, and their skin is dotted with stars in constellations Leorio's never seen before. What stands out the most, however, is a massive spider--looking as if it's perched on their back, twelve long legs stretching out to the edges of the image as if they wrap around the figure's body entirely. There's an inverted cross marked on its belly as well. 

Some distance away is a sketched face--it looks like the artist's hands were shaking at the time. There's another star marked directly underneath one eye. And along the bottom of the page, there are thirteen more sketched faces: a man with large earrings and both eyes scribbled over violently; another with a high ponytail; one with narrow eyes, mouth covered by what appears to be a high collar; a woman with extremely messy hair; a man with long hair and several piercings; another with no eyebrows and deep-set eyes; one with short hair and large eyes; one with a stitched face; another with short, unevenly cut hair falling over one eye; a woman with short hair and an apathetic expression; a man with narrow eyes and a too-wide smile; one with messy, spiked hair and a cocky grin; and one with short, slicked-back hair and a thin, cruel smile.

"Watch out for any of those," Kurapika says, gives Leorio a few more minutes to take them in, and then takes the drawing back, carrying it out of the room once more. When he sits back down again, he continues. "In particular, if you see that star mark... run. Run like your life depends on it. If I'm not nearby, then get out of the house. He can't leave--none of them can, so if you see any of them and I'm not there at the time, then just go. Go anywhere, just get out of the house. You'll be safe outside."

"...And you're stuck in here with all of them?"

Kurapika smiles thinly. "As I've told you many times by now, I can fight them off."

"Most of the time."

"Yes." Kurapika's voice falters for a moment, and he touches his face almost absentmindedly, fingers skimming up his jaw and to his temples before stopping at the corner of his eye. "Most of the time. But again; they can't kill me. You, on the other hand, wouldn't last a minute."

"Gee, thanks."

"It's not an insult, Leorio. It's a fact. You don't have the power to fight them."

"Why do you?"

Kurapika closes his eyes tightly. "Someone has to. It might as well be me."

"I don't think that's true."

"What you think doesn't matter."

"Kurapika, they're hurting you!"

_"Good!"_ Kurapika snaps, and Leorio freezes.

"...Kurapika..." He doesn't know what else to say to that. That's... that's awful.

"Those who commit sins ought to be punished." Kurapika's tone is icy. "I'm simply paying for my own. Even this is more than I really ought to have. Without it, I'd have nothing. No shelter, no one to care... No hope. This is as close to perfect as my reality can be. Why do you keep telling me it's flawed? It's not as if you can offer me anything more."

"But... you're trapped here."

"I have everything I need here. Why would I feel trapped?"

"A comfortable cage is still a cage, Kurapika!"

"Oh, like _you'd_ know?" Kurapika's eyes narrow, and a look of pure contempt flashes across his face. "You don't know _anything,_ Leorio."

"How am I supposed to know if you won't _explain_ anything?"

"It's none of your business, so leave it alone!"

"Fine!" Leorio stands up abruptly. "You clearly don't want my help."

"No, I don't! I don't need to be _'saved',_ so if _that's_ what you're after, then just--_get out!"_ Kurapika practically screams. "Get out of my house! If your world is so great, then _stay there!"_

"I will!" Leorio snaps. "Have fun dealing with this shit all by yourself!"

_"I rescind my invitation!"_

And that's that.


	7. Chapter 7

It doesn't take long for Leorio to cool down. It does take a while for him to return. After all, just because he's calmed down doesn't mean Kurapika has.

When he does come back, he brings an entire cake. It seems like Kurapika has a bit of a sweet tooth, from what he's observed. And yes, it put him out a bit, but it wasn't _that_ expensive, and anyway... Leorio doesn't want things to continue the way they ended last time.

The door opens, and Kurapika looks at him with tired eyes.

"You're here again."

"Yeah."

"Hello."

"Hello to you too." He holds out the cake, and feels a flicker of satisfaction at the way Kurapika brightens. It's almost imperceptible, but it's _there._

"I'm sorry about the other day," he continues. "You're right, I don't... really know what's going on here. I guess it's not really my place to talk about."

"I'm sorry for getting angry with you," Kurapika returns. "Your heart was in the right place, even if you _were_ completely wrong."

Well, he can't say he expected even that much. 

"Come in," Kurapika adds abruptly, and turns around. "And make sure you close the door."

"I'm surprised you came back at all. Don't you have anything better to do? Say, _study?"_

"I'm doing fine in classes, so clearly I'm still studying enough. Besides. Why not have some friendly conversation?"

"You consider _this_ friendly conversation?" Kurapika arches an eyebrow, and for a moment it feels a little bit like he's judging Leorio. "You're weird."

"I'm pretty sure most people would consider _you_ the weird one." 

Kurapika actually cracks a smile at that. "You may be right."

For a moment, Leorio feels a little smug at having gotten him to smile. That disappears as Kurapika continues, "But don't think we're friends."

"Aw, come on. Really?"

"I mean it. We're not friends, and we can't be friends. So if that's what you want, I suggest you give up."

"Why not?"

Kurapika sighs. "Have you ever heard of the paradox of Theseus's ship?"

"What?" That's really out of nowhere. Why's he suddenly asking about something like that?

"...If you took something and replaced all its parts over time, and then took the old parts and reassembled it, which would be the original?" 

"I… don't know?" _And what does that have to do with anything, anyway?_

"I'm not sure anyone does... People are the same. I'm sure you knew that, since you want to be a doctor. Every day, countless cells in your body die and are replaced. So then, are you even the same person you were when we first met? Being in this house slows it for you, but you're still normal. You'll still age, and die. I won't... not ever." He gestures towards the window. "I watch the world change outside, but everything in here stays the same. The only way I even know any time has passed is because the things out my window and the people who visit change. I don't belong in your world any more than you belong in mine. It's sad..." He cuts off, as if he's said too much.

"What's sad?"

"It's sad... to see the world changing around me but not be able to be part of it. I don't want to see a world I can't ever enter."

"Why can't you just leave?"

"I made a promise." He looks... so far away, for a moment. "3500 years. That's how long I'm bound to this place. I made a vow and I can't leave until I've fulfilled it."

Leorio's jaw drops. _"3500 years?!_ That's _crazy!_ How--how long do you have left?"

"I don't know." Kurapika shrugs, not really seeming to care. "I'll be told when it's finished, so I don't need to keep track of it. But for now, even after all these years... this place isn't ready to let me go. Not yet."

"How do you know you're not just gonna get lied to?"

"They wouldn't lie to me." His hands curl into fists. "They would never lie to me. Don't say that again."

"Right... Sorry." This is about those 'guardians' again, isn't it?

"Why did you do it?"

"That's not any of your business. You're an outsider, so don't act entitled."

_It was just a question..._

Kurapika brushes his hair back behind one ear, and there's a brief glimmer of red--he's wearing an earring, Leorio realizes. It's simple, but beautiful. _Like Kurapika,_ he thinks, and hopes his embarrassment at that thought doesn't show on his face.

But there's one other thing he notices--a bruise under and behind his ear, shaped like a crescent.

_Shit._

_It's not serious,_ he reminds himself. Not for Kurapika, anyway. For anyone else, he'd be really worried, and for a moment he still was--but Kurapika's proven by now that he's anything but normal. And this injury, though it should be incredibly serious, doesn't even seem to faze him. Maybe it's already healed, and the bruise is the only remaining sign.

Still.

"Kurapika, did you hit your head recently? Maybe in a fall?"

"Hmm?" He looks up, and blinks. "Yes, actually. Yesterday. I was pushed down the stairs. How did you know?"

Leorio winces. He says that so bluntly that it sounds like it's not even a big deal to him. 

"You have a bruise... that usually shows up when someone's broken part of their skull."

"Oh. So that's what happened. I was _wondering_ about that." Kurapika almost looks like he's smiling. "I wasn't _worried,_ since, as I've said, I can't die, but it was... unpleasant, to say the least."

"I can imagine." Except he really can't, and he hopes he never has to find out. "Is it still..."

"Probably not. The marks stay longer than the injuries themselves." Kurapika shrugs slightly. "This one will fade with time, too."

"...Someone really pushed you down the stairs?"

"Of course. Did you think I was lying?"

"No! I just--" _I don't understand why anyone would do that to you._

"It's hardly anything new. Well, the injury was more serious than usual, I think. I wonder why..." His voice trails off for a moment, but he shakes his head as if trying to clear his thoughts and continues. "The _things_ that live here hate me just as much as I hate them. Though it's entirely their fault that they're trapped here in the first place... But they take it out on me. Some are quite creative, too." Now he _is_ smiling, thin and humorless. "I was lucky, actually."

_"Lucky?!"_

"Well, yes. It was quite disturbing, but ultimately it ended rather quickly." Kurapika folds his hands. "He could have made it last much, much longer."

"...Right. You told me about--"

"That man with the inverted cross," Kurapika interrupts. "I warned you about him in particular, right?"

"Yeah. Yeah, you did. Is he the one who did that?"

"Yes, surprisingly enough. He's not usually the type to end things so quickly..." Kurapika closes his eyes. "Maybe I'll ask, next time he tries something."

"You--_what?_ Ignoring how dangerous that is, won't he just _lie?"_

"No." Kurapika says it with an incredible amount of certainty. "He is not a liar. Men like him do not need to lie."

_What does that mean?_

"The other one, though, with the star on his face... _He_ will smile at you and then stab you in the back."

"...Noted."

"Am I frightening you?"

"Maybe a little..."

"Good. You should be afraid of this place." Kurapika's eyes are cold. "It wasn't meant for you."

"I trust you."

At that, Kurapika's eyes blow wide. Leorio's not sure _what_ made those words come out of his mouth.

"Why?" Kurapika's voice is shaking. "Why would you say that? You don't even know me. For all you know, I--"

"Are you planning on hurting me?"

"No..."

"I believe you." Leorio smiles. "I don't think you're a liar. If you are, you're very dedicated to the part. I think you're a good person, Kurapika."

"...I'm not a good person. I'm not even a _normal_ person."

"I mean, I'm not sure anyone really counts as--"

_"I'm not even **alive,** Leorio!"_

He feels like he's been punched.

Kurapika's eyes are glassy, and his breaths are--

Oh.

_Oh, god._

He's stopped breathing entirely.


	8. Chapter 8

He stares in numb horror for a while after that, not wanting to, no, not _able_ to process what he's just heard. Not _alive?_ But... 

But there's so many things about what's going on here that he still doesn't know. He can't say it doesn't make sense--_none_ of this makes any sense.

"...You're... not alive?"

"No." Kurapika stares down at the table.

"...I'm... I'm sorry." He's not really sure what else to say. Being abruptly told that someone he'd been starting to think of as a friend is _dead,_ and has been for longer than Leorio's even been alive--it's not exactly a situation he could be prepared for.

"Why are you apologizing? It wasn't your fault. Besides. I wanted it this way."

"I don't understand..." His head is spinning. He keeps waiting for Kurapika to start laughing at him, making fun of him for falling for such an obvious lie.

"I chose to die." Kurapika closes his eyes, and then stands up. "Follow me."

He leads Leorio to the room at the end of the upstairs hallway--the door is closed and locked once more, but he takes the key out from under his collar and unlocks it. There's a faint red glow as the key turns in the lock, and then the door swings open easily.

The room is small, every surface covered in white cloth. And there's the bed from before, drapes closed around it, a shadow outlined through the thin fabric.

As Kurapika walks forward, he speaks in a language Leorio doesn't understand. His hands are outstretched, and for a moment, Leorio thinks he sees something--rays of scarlet light, threads wrapping down and around Kurapika's arms, around his legs, stretching back towards the bed.

He pauses in front of it, closes his eyes, and reaches out, pulling the curtains back to reveal the person on the other side.

It's a dark-haired boy clad in red and gold robes, slightly younger than Kurapika from the looks of him, thin and pale and sound asleep. The red threads are back, now--shimmering around his throat and wrists and ankles, binding him in place.

"This is Pairo." Kurapika's voice is soft and sad. "He is the only one of us who still lives."

"'Us'?"

"My people. My family." Kurapika closes his eyes again. "If you want the full truth, then take his hand."

_I'm not sure I do._ But he finds himself reaching out anyway.

The moment his hand closes around the smaller boy's, the thread starts to wrap around them both--he tries to pull back, but can't. 

And then he's no longer in that room at all.

_Screaming. That's the first thing he registers. Then the oppressive heat, and the smell of blood hanging thick in the air._

_There's fire in the sky. That's what it looks like, anyway--red and black, smoke so thick it blocks the sun. The world is burning and Leorio is in the middle of it, watching it crumble and fall._

_There's a little girl next to him, a child who couldn't be older than twelve, crying in fear. When he reaches out to comfort her, his hands go through her--and then she stiffens with a jolt, mouth opening wide as if to scream, and a sharp-eyed woman carelessly pulls a needle and thread through her chest. A disturbingly large man laughs and tosses the mangled body of a young woman to the ground; a smaller one moves in the blink of an eye and cuts a boy's head clean off. A man in green stumbles, and is run through in seconds by the man chasing after him. Everywhere Leorio looks, people are dying--and the same twelve people appear over and over and over. Some kill like it means nothing to them at all. Others are clearly relishing it. He's not sure which is more disturbing._

_And then there is Kurapika, bruised and bloody, blue and gold robes torn and stained through, and Pairo, practically being carried. Kurapika clearly doesn't have the strength for it, and he stumbles, falls, and Pairo falls with him. He gasps, inhales smoke, and coughs blood into his hands._

_And then there's a man standing over him, too-wide eyes and a heavy coat._

_"So you two are the last?"_

_Kurapika spits blood at the man's feet. "Go to hell," he chokes, and starts coughing again. Are his eyes watering from the smoke, or something else?_

_The man laughs, quiet and humorless, and then turns to the other twelve. "Kill them," he says coldly._

_And then everything stops._

_ **Not yet.** _

_Deep blue on black, and a shadowy figure reaches out a hand._

_Kurapika looks up, the only one still moving in a tableau of statues. "Why?" he asks. "Why only now?"_

_ **We needed you. All of you. The loss of even one drains Us.** _

_Kurapika flinches, and looks down again. "You're saying this is my fault."_

_ **Perhaps. Perhaps not. If not you, someone else. You know well of fate.** _

_"Why are you here?"_

_ **If you all perish, We perish.** _

_"So it's only about you after all." He coughs again, rough and wet and painful._

_ **We can save one of you. If We are provided with the means to do so.** _

_"What do you mean?"_

_ **The other is Ours. Ours, until the debt has been repaid.** _

_"...They said... you were merciful." Blood stains his bitter smile._

_ **Is this not mercy?** _

_"Not if it's only for you..."_

_ **You are dying. As is he. What is your decision?** _

_"What if I say no?"_

_ **You are both lost. As are We. Accept, and one of you will live. The other belongs to Us. Refuse, and both will die. Will you end your line for the sake of your pride?** _

_"You'll get us out of this?"_

_ **We will lend you Our strength. And in exchange, you will lend Us yours. We are not unkind. You will be well treated. Unless you prefer to give him to Us instead.** _

_"No... I'll do it." Kurapika's hands curl into fists. "This is my... my fault, right? So I'll do it. Save him. Take me."_

_ **Bind yourself to Us. You know the prayers.** _

_"...Promise me... you'll save him."_

_ **We promise. Now pray. It will end quickly.** _

_Kurapika bows his head, and the world begins to move again._

_The woman from before stands over him now, looking down with cold eyes. From her hands come thin, almost invisible threads, stretching out to tie around him--and then she steps back in barely-visible fear as something else catches underneath them._

_Red thread wraps around Kurapika's body, and it begins to spread out, lengthening. His injuries are gone, and his eyes glow red. When he lifts his hand, the threads reach the feet of the thirteen standing before him. When he speaks, it's with a thousand voices, all filled with cold hatred, all saying the same thing._

_ **"Die."**_

When Leorio regains his senses, he takes a step back, and then another. He wonders if the fear shows on his face at all.

"We're family," Kurapika says softly. "Pairo and I... Even if we aren't directly related. I'm all he has, and he's... he's all I have. I... can't let him die. I could never let him die... But they saved him. I don't know how, but they did. I was... happy. He wasn't going to die... I was really, really happy. I've been here ever since then, but it's okay. I'm just glad that I was able to save him."

"...I thought you said they were kind." His voice sounds so far away. He's cold, suddenly. He's so, so cold.

"They are. They... they saved him."

"And they made you into--into _this?!_ Someone who can't even go outside, who's trapped with things that hurt him constantly?!"

"They need me!" Kurapika's hands are shaking. "You don't understand. They didn't have enough power to save us both--they need me to be here so they can keep him safe."

"Why? Why can't they just let him go? He looks perfectly fine."

"...They have reasons. They always have reasons." 

"...You don't know?" It's not really a question.

"I don't need to know. They tell me what I need to know. If they're not telling me, then it's not important."

_What the fuck?_

"Can you leave now? Please leave. I have to--I have to talk to them." He's looking anywhere but at Leorio. "I... You need to leave."

"...Okay. But I'll be back."

Kurapika actually seems to relax at that. "Please." His voice is quiet. "Please come back."

"As long as you want me around."

"I do. Just... not now."

He doesn't want to leave Kurapika alone. Not like this. But it's not like he really has an option--if he refuses to leave, Kurapika will just _make_ him leave, and it'll erode a little more of the already-fragile trust between them.

So he leaves, memories of fear and pain still filling his mind, and he hopes with all that's in him that Kurapika is going to be all right.


	9. Chapter 9

"You're back."

This time, when Kurapika says it, his voice is soft.

"I said I would be, didn't I?" Leorio wishes he sounded a little happier, but to be honest, he feels like shit. He'd barely slept the night before, the images he'd seen still cycling through his mind. 

Kurapika doesn't look good either. There are dark circles under his eyes, and bruises on his neck.

"Come in," he says, and tries to smile.

"You got hurt again." It seems like a rather pointless observation to make, honestly. He knows perfectly well, of course, that Kurapika's injuries don't last... but seeing him hurt, for some reason... it still really bothers Leorio.

"Things were... somewhat destabilized yesterday." Kurapika's smile is strained. "But it's fine."

"If you say so..."

"Are _you_ all right? You don't look well." 

"Oh!" Kurapika's worried about him? He can't say he's displeased, but a little surprised? Definitely. "I'm okay! I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night..."

"It's because of what I showed you, isn't it? I'm sorry." Kurapika looks down at the table. "I forget, sometimes... I've lived with it for so long that I... it doesn't seem out of the ordinary anymore."

"Nothing about this place is ordinary," Leorio replies bluntly. "And really, it's not a big deal." It freaked him out, but he doesn't want Kurapika to feel bad about it. "I'm totally okay! I just..." His own voice falters. "Is there any way I can help you?"

Kurapika laughs a little at that, but there's no humor in it. "No."

"Are you sure? I can--"

"There's nothing you can do, Leorio." Kurapika looks back up, and Leorio finds it almost impossible to keep eye contact. There's a faint red glow, he thinks--and normally he'd think that was impossible, but with Kurapika, he's not sure anything is really impossible anymore. "Trust me."

"How do you know if you won't even let me try?!"

"You're not the first person who's said they want to help, Leorio." Kurapika's hands curl into fists. "I believe that you mean it. I really do. But I've been here for longer than I could ever hope to remember. I _know_ this place. You've barely been here at all... you have no idea. You can't help me, and that's that. I'm sorry."

"...Then why did you ask me to come back?"

"Because I--" Kurapika cuts himself off quickly, and presses a hand to his temple as if he's trying to stifle a headache. "It's... nice, having someone to talk to." Now _he's_ the one avoiding eye contact. 

"What's wrong?" 

"Nothing." But he still won't look Leorio in the eye.

"There's something you're not telling me." He's absolutely certain of that.

"Just drop it!" Kurapika snaps, and Leorio can't help but flinch. "Nothing is wrong!" His eyes dart around the room as if looking for something, eventually fixing on one spot by the entryway, and Leorio can't help but follow his gaze, finding nothing except--

A small wisp of black smoke.

But as soon as he sees it, it disappears--so fast that he can't even be sure it was ever there in the first place, that it wasn't just his imagination. 

"Kurapika..."

"You didn't see anything," Kurapika mutters urgently. "There was nothing there. Do you understand?"

"Kurapika, I--"

_"Do you understand?!"_

Leorio nods, shaken. "I... Yeah."

"..." Kurapika closes his eyes and breathes in deeply, before smiling. "Do you want to use the library for a while?" he asks, sounding... almost cheerful. "I have some things I need to take care of, but if you want to study for a little, you can. It's safe in there, so you can be there by yourself, if you're worried about that."

The sudden change in demeanor is disorienting, to say the least, but Leorio nods. If it's really as useful as Kurapika's made it sound, then he might as well...

"Good. Follow me."

Kurapika all but pushes him into the library before shutting the door on him, leaving without another word and leaving Leorio to take things in. It's not as large of a room as he was expecting--it's lined almost wall to wall with bookshelves, one chair tucked into a corner along with a small table and a reading lamp, and a single large window on one wall to let more light in. 

Leorio sighs, and walks to the nearest shelf. He might as well get some studying done, while Kurapika's off doing... whatever it is he's doing.

His attempt to study proves somewhat futile; the moment he finds exactly the book he needs in front of him, he becomes curious about just how this library works.

It's strange. No--impossible. Though nothing is impossible in this place, is it? No matter what he thinks of, the shelves rearrange, providing the book he wanted and many others like it. _You might be interested in,_ he thinks, and can't help but laugh, disbelieving, even though at this point there is nothing not to be believed. Kurapika is... something beyond human. And this house warps around him like it bends to his will, and now to Leorio's. It makes him feel... He has no words to describe it.

He's so distracted by it all that he forgets, for a long moment, Kurapika's warning.

_"Don't go anywhere without me."_

He's barely taken a step outside the library when he hears it, like it was _waiting_ for him, a fox waiting for the rabbit to leave its hole. 

"So you're Red Eye's new pet."

He turns, startled, and finds himself face to face with something else that shouldn't be possible.

There's a man standing in front of him, dark hair and a thick coat, and his eyes...

He doesn't _have_ eyes. There are only dark voids where they should be, and for a moment Leorio feels like his soul is going to be sucked straight out of his body if he looks into that darkness for too long. 

He takes a step back on instinct alone, but realizes only a moment later that there was no point. He has nowhere to run, as evidenced by the long-fingered, ghostly pale hand wrapped around his wrist.

_"You,"_ the dark-haired man snarls, distaste clear in his voice and on his features. 

"Me," the figure behind Leorio replies, sounding delighted. "Sorry to steal your kill. Unless... you want to _fight_ me for it."

"...No." The eyeless man cocks his head slightly, as if listening for something. "Take it."

"He's coming, isn't he?" The grip on Leorio's wrist tightens, and he feels long fingernails digging into his skin. "How _wonderful."_

Leorio can't move, no matter how hard he tries--held fast by whoever is behind him and a freezing cold aura. He watches helplessly as the man in front of him fades, and wonders if he's about to die.

The person behind him laughs, and Leorio shudders. Something vicious is in that sound.

Yes. He's going to die, he's certain of it now. Unless--

Unless those footsteps belong to Kurapika. Unless the heavy, cold, grating sound of metal on metal is from him. Unless the sharp scent of earth and fire and somehow even _cold,_ colder even than winter air, is--

_"Release him."_

The moment Leorio's hand is free, he clutches it to his chest--there's marks on it like he's been burned by the touch of the person behind him. He doesn't particularly want to turn around, but can't keep himself from doing so anyway. "Kurapika?"

Kurapika is like nothing Leorio's ever seen before.

There aren't words to describe the whole of what he's seeing, only parts, bits and pieces that seem like they shouldn't be able to fit together without wearing holes in each other but somehow _do,_ anyway, and maybe there are holes there but Leorio can't see them, isn't even sure what he _can_ see aside from the barest details--

Blue, deep blue, ancient and worn under layers of snow and ice--

Fire, scarlet light spilling forth from Kurapika's face, his eyes, red liquid on his cheeks--

Gold around his neck, his head, his wrists, binding him--

Crimson stars, constellations against pale skin, and _those,_ he's seen those before--

And it's _frightening._ Kurapika's shadow is _wrong,_ a seething, _changing_ shape even though there's no light to cause the change. 

"Leorio," Kurapika says almost calmly, in a voice that is somehow both his and not, "run."

The man between them is focused on Kurapika now, turned away, but if he turned around again, would Leorio see a star marked on his face? 

"Hello, little fury," he says, and still sounds so, so gleeful. "Come to save your newest plaything?"

"I am not like you," Kurapika responds, his tone still so even. "You may consider others your toys, but I do not." He pauses, and adds, in a more warning tone, "Leorio..."

"I'm not--" _Not leaving you._ He doesn't know what's happening, but he doesn't want to leave Kurapika with... whoever, _whatever_ this is, no matter what Kurapika has said about being able to fight it. 

"Yes, you are." Kurapika's eyes soften and gray, for only a moment. "Because you have to. _Go."_

Why is it that that softness sways Leorio more than the order from earlier did? 

He takes a step back, and sees Kurapika relax slightly, his eyes gleaming red again as he turns his attention back to his opponent.

"You want to hurt someone," Leorio hears, as he turns. "Don't you?"

"You know the answer to that already."

"Fine." Out of the corner of his eye, Leorio sees the red light glowing brighter, feels a sudden heat. "But you will _not_ harm him. If you're going to hurt someone, then it will be me. That's always been our deal, hasn't it? But there's one other thing that hasn't changed. If you want to hurt me..." He makes a sound that Leorio can't quite classify, somewhere between a short laugh and--no, that can't be right, can it? "You're going to have to _try."_

_"Gladly,"_ Leorio hears, just before the front door slams shut behind him.


	10. Chapter 10

He doesn't go home this time. He _can't._ Instead he tries the door over and over, needing to get back in, needing to make sure Kurapika is safe. Even though he knows, he knows it's stupid, that it's not like he stands a chance--that sound Kurapika made before the door closed, it scared him. That man, if he even was a man, scared him.

Eventually, he must fall asleep, because in what seems like the blink of an eye he finds himself somewhere else; he first registers it as being very soft, and warm, and then opens his eyes and realizes he's in bed. For a moment, he thinks he must have been dreaming, that all of this was just a very strange dream. And it makes sense, after all. Magic houses, populated by the dead? It's ridiculous. Of course he was just--

Wait. Wait. This isn't his bed.

_Oh, shit--_and he snaps very fully awake and sits up, taking in his surroundings. The bedroom is very old-fashioned, but it's cozy. There's an enormous pile of books on the bedside table. And, he notices with some relief, Kurapika is sitting in a chair in the corner, reading.

"Good morning, Leorio," he says, without looking up from his book.

"Uh. G-Good morning. You about gave me a heart attack, you know?"

"Sorry." Kurapika closes the book. He doesn't really seem all that sorry. "You fell asleep on the doorstep. I wasn't just going to leave you out there to freeze."

"Oh." Leorio can feel his face heating up a little bit. Probably from embarrassment. Almost certainly, really. He can't imagine what else it would be related to. "Is... Is this your room?"

"Yes."

"...I could've just slept on the couch or something, it would've been fine. Did you--did you _stay awake_ all night?"

"I don't need sleep, Leorio," Kurapika says dryly. "In case you've forgotten, I'm _dead."_

Yes, well, his medical textbooks have never exactly covered if dead people need sleep. "Well, thank you anyway."

"It's not a problem." Kurapika looks away, and for a moment Leorio thinks his face is a little red. He chooses not to ponder exactly how that would work, because there probably aren't any good answers... and it's probably going to bother him for a very long time anyway.

"...So... are you okay?" Leorio finally asks, hesitantly. "After what happened..."

"What?" Kurapika seems almost startled by the question. "Y-Yes. I'm fine."

"Okay, good." Leorio relaxes a little bit. 

"You shouldn't have left the library." The tone in Kurapika's voice almost hurts. "I warned you. You should have listened to me."

"I... I forgot," Leorio admits. "It was so cool in there, I wasn't really thinking about anything else."

Kurapika makes a noncommittal sort of noise. "You're too impulsive. And irresponsible, at that."

"Hey! I'm plenty responsible," Leorio retorts. "I just forgot, I already told you that!"

"Forgetting could have _killed you,_ Leorio!" Kurapika snaps. "You could have _died_ because you just _weren't really thinking!_ You could have _died,_ and I would have--I would--"

He looks like he's going to cry, Leorio realizes. 

"Kurapika, I didn't mean--"

"No, you didn't. No one ever does!" Now he _is_ crying. "This always happens! Every single time I--everyone always dies, or leaves, or--I can't _take this_ anymore, Leorio! I can't take wondering if you're going to do something awful, or get yourself killed, or just get tired and walk away! I can't--Why does this _always happen?"_

"What are you--"

"It's like you're _supposed_ to hurt me! Every single time one of you walks in here, something bad always happens. I wish--I wish you'd just stayed away. I wish you all just stayed away from me! I _hate_ people like you! I hate how you just come in here and turn everything upside down and make everything hurt more, and I hate that I still _care!_ Why do I still--" He buries his face in his hands, shaking. "It's not _fair,"_ he says, his voice muffled. "I don't want to keep doing this."

Leorio has no idea what to do. He has no idea, but he finds himself standing up anyway, moving over to Kurapika very slowly. "Hey," he says softly. "Hey, Kurapika, listen to me."

Kurapika lowers his hands slightly, just enough for Leorio to see his eyes. That faint red glow has returned. "What?" he asks bitterly. "What do you want?"

"I'm not going to get myself killed." Leorio sighs. "I'm pretty sure what just happened was more than enough to make sure of that. And I don't know what you mean by doing something awful, but I'm not going to. And I won't get tired--come on, do you really think that? I... I really like being around you. Yeah, you're a bit of an asshole sometimes, but I know--I know that you're a good person."

"No, you don't," Kurapika mumbles. "You don't know anything about me."

"That's not true," Leorio argues. "I saw what you did for Pairo. The fact that you're here--you did that because you wanted to protect him, even if it meant you would get hurt. That's not something just anyone would do."

"It was my fault in the first place." Kurapika closes his eyes. "This is just my punishment. I deserve it."

_I doubt it._ "Do you... want to talk about it?"

Kurapika scoffs at the thought. "What is there to talk about? I left my home, my family, and when I came back they were all dying. We weren't _supposed_ to leave. I knew we weren't, but... I did anyway. And because of me, they all..." He cuts himself off. "It was my fault."

"You really think that _leaving_ was what caused it? Because that's not what it looked like to me."

"I broke our vows," Kurapika says flatly. "I broke the promises we made. I wanted to see everything, I wanted more than to be stuck in one place for the rest of my life, and look how that ended up." He laughs, but it doesn't sound like much of anything. "They're all dead, Pairo's the only one who even has a chance at surviving, and I'm _still stuck."_

"...You really don't want to be here, do you?" He knew before, but not just how much.

But instead of the answer he expects, Kurapika flinches like he's been struck. "No, I--You misunderstood. I don't mind being here. It's not like I--I don't have any other options, anyway, but even if I did, I wouldn't--this place isn't so bad. It could be a lot worse. I don't mind it. I really don't." His voice is a little too high-pitched, and his eyes are darting around the room like he's looking for something. "It's fine. Don't--don't worry about it."

_The more you talk like that, the more I **will** worry about it, you know._

But it doesn't seem like Kurapika is going to give him an honest answer, even if the truth is fairly obvious at this point. 

That's fine. Leorio won't push it. Kurapika will open up when he's ready... if he ever is.

"So... what were you reading before I woke up?" he finally asks, and Kurapika's eyes light up a little bit.

"Oh, you'd like it, I think. It's about a man who moves into a house that turns out to be haunted--"

Leorio sits down on the floor, and he honestly tries to pay attention, but he can't seem to focus on anything but how animated and happy Kurapika looks, explaining the plot of a book that Leorio will probably never actually read.

Despite his earlier outburst, Kurapika seems to be enjoying himself now, and that's all Leorio can ask for, really.


End file.
